New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie shakes hands with a Wall Police Officer as he leaves his first pubic forum pressing for support of his "Fairness Formula" school funding plan Tuesday, June 28, 2016 at the... (Tom Gralish/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)

(Newser)
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The executive director of the Kansas City library system says he is "outraged" that prosecutors continue to pursue charges against a man who was arrested after asking pointed questions during a library discussion about the Middle East peace process and an employee who tried to intervene. Although the arrests occurred in May following a speech by author and diplomat Dennis Ross, the library system only recently went public about its opposition to charges, the Kansas City Star reported. R. Crosby Kemper III, executive director of the city's library system, said "we're going to be living in a different kind of country" if people can be arrested for asking questions at a library.

Issues arose after Ross finished speaking and took a question from Jeremy Rothe-Kushel concerning whether Jewish Americans should be concerned about actions by the US and Israel that amount to "state-sponsored terrorism." When Rothe-Kushel tried to ask another question, a private security guard grasped his arm, followed by an off-duty police officer, both employed by the Jewish Community Foundation. Rothe-Kushel then shouted, "Get your hands off of me right now!" Steve Woolfolk, director of public programming for the library, tried to intervene. Both men were arrested by off-duty officers who had been hired by the event sponsor; they face charges in city court, Rothe-Kushel with trespassing and resisting arrest and Woolfolk with interfering with an arrest. Kemper says the private security guards had no right to remove a patron for asking a question.

Something tells me the police training in Oklahoma are wanting. One in January charged with raping people, and the other w/ manslaughter charges "cuz she was scuuurrred". If he refused to leave, trespassing, sure. Arrested for free speech... Cop should have known better.

tpvero

Oct 4, 2016 10:57 AM CDT

The cops were under orders from the group who rented the room for the talk, the Jewish Community Foundation. There was an American diplomat, Dennis Ross, who is a Jewish man giving the talk, . The cops were under orders and no one seems to be processing that. The cops did not take it upon themselves to arrest this guy. They were taking orders. Why isn't anyone getting that? People should be googling names of the group and the diplomat to find out more about them.

D Ash

Oct 4, 2016 10:01 AM CDT

If there isn't more to this story, I will be very surprised. As it appears now, the questioner is about to get a court-ordered payday from the Jewish organization who hired the "security personnel".